2022 Argentina: A Harvest That Challenged Producers’ Skills 

BY JOAQUÍN HIDALGO | MAY 11, 2022

It’s mid-April, and there aren’t many grapes left to harvest in Argentina. That’s pretty unusual in a country where winery doors typically close in early May. For better or worse, unusual weather makes for an unusual vintage. According to oenologists and agricultural engineers, several different factors led to an accelerated harvest. Overall, the 2022 harvest can be summed up as one of great quality. Bumps in the road could be overcome by good decision-making and precise timing, which promises elegantly balanced reds.

A Gualtallary vineyard known as El Monasterio on the afternoon of March 23. At that point of the 2022 vintage, the grapes were ripening to perfection.

And yet, there’s no getting away from the fact that this is a year with more than its fair share of challenges. The climate was extremely variable, featuring harsher frosts and greater rainfall than average years. The details vary depending on who you talk to, but there is a consensus about the hard numbers: grape yields were low, with an estimated drop of 12% across Argentina. We’ll have to wait a while for a precise breakdown, but judging by the preliminary numbers on April 17 (the latest available), it looks as though total yield will be one of the lowest in the last 20 years, alongside 2016 and 2017. We’ll go into further detail as to why below, but this has had an expected effect on the price of grapes – which, in some cases, has doubled to as high as US$1.50 a kilo – and thus on the wines themselves. That’s the headline news for 2022, especially among the whites.  

The other major talking point is the weather, which in some cases helped to achieve wonderful flavor, and in others just rubbed salt into the wound. There are plenty of winners and losers in the meteorological lottery during a year that was cooler than usual across about 80% of the country, similar to 2021.

The good news is that producers that focus on fine wines are delighted: “It was a bloody fantastic harvest,” crows Alejandro Vigil at Catena Wines. Vigil’s enthusiasm is shared by many others. “The wines are very elegant, with a precise varietal character,” reports the experienced winemaker José Galante at Salentein, while the majority agree that in 2022 “there was a perfect window in March in which to achieve perfect ripeness,” says Germán Di Cesare at Trivento.

But focusing only on the good news would gloss over events before and after said perfect window.

Mendoza: Challenging Weather

Let’s start with that abruptly curtailed finish. On March 30, a long-forecast cold front came up from the south of the continent, bringing an early end to the harvest. There were two days of frosts, from Patagonia to San Juan, which especially affected the cooler areas of the Andean foothills. For example, in El Cepillo (to the south of the Uco Valley) where frosts are often severe, temperatures got as low as -4°C for several hours. Up until that early morning, the plants had been green and healthy, with their grapes either ripe or almost there. Two days later, they looked more like they do in the middle of winter, only with suddenly exposed bunches glistening in the sun. However, not far away in Los Chacayes and Gualtallary, the frost barely made an impression. Because cold air flows in a current, it causes most damage in areas where it can accumulate. This is one of the keys to reading the year.

A vineyard in Gualtallary belonging to Zorzal Wines, which was partially hit by the frost, was completely bare by April 21. Here we can see the effect of the cold weather. 

“During the weeks beforehand, we pushed our presses to the limit,” says Martín Kaiser, head of wines at Doña Paula. “We couldn’t have worked any faster and left the areas we knew wouldn’t be hurt by the frost until last.” Their approach was mirrored by several wineries that work with grapes from different regions. The challenge was getting the grapes picked in record time, so mechanical and press capacities were major factors. Those who were quick off the block were rewarded.  

Andrea Ferreyra at Finca La Celia, which is located in the area hit hardest by the frost, says: “This year is showing great potential, especially the Malbec and grapes such as Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon which are presenting fresh profiles.” In other words, they were picked in March. Grapes from vines harvested later on will have greenish or overripe characters, most likely featuring potent geranium aromas. 

Of course, some regions escaped the frost, such as Luján de Cuyo and Maipú. Noelia Torres, the Oenologist at Marchori Barraud, is pleased to report that “the Cabernets I made from Agrelo and Perdriel are a dream.” Maricruz Antolín at Krontiras Wines (based in Maipú) reports, “Cool years are good for warmer areas, and that’s what happened this year.” Pablo Cúneo at Luigi Bosca agrees: “It’s an excellent year for the region.”